The inspirational McCaw - to many observers man-of-the-match for the umpteenth time - led from the front and his faultless controlling of the breakdown was impeccable. This made it easier for the rest of the forward pack to follow and play splendidly as a unit.

The turnovers from the Wallabies were a joy to watch, with the rejuvenated men in black piling in like killer whales to constantly prevent the ball from being released.

With the tight five and loose forwards all in sync, the impressive backline were only too delighted with good ball delivered - and they certainly made the most of their chances.

Ma’a Nonu and Corey Jane showed no fear and displayed the sort of confidence borne of playing on familiar territory, scoring spectacular individual tries.

Fellow Wellingtonians Neemia Tialata and Jason Eaton weren’t fazed, either, and were also outstanding. The three tries to none were completed with some smooth crisp passes which led to born-again majestic winger Joe Rokocoko finally breaking his forever ’n’ ever try-scoring drought.

The lineouts were a big improvement, although as Henry observed, not under the same pressure sustained against the Springboks the week before.

To hell with that. The Wallabies are fantastic lineout practitioners themselves and from my point of view, we did quite well considering. So, we’ll take it.

Surprisingly though, dangerous players like Matt Giteau, James O’Connor and Berrick Barnes were kept relatively quiet all night.

The world’s best loosehead prop Tony Woodcock continues his silent-assassin expertise, destroying whatever was bugging him at scrum time. Lock Brad Thorn was a sheer brute as usual, encouraging his new second-row partner Tom Donnelly, who played very well on debut.

Flanker Adam Thomson and No.8 Kieran Read will be hard-pressed to be replaced as they combined superbly with their skipper and easily dominated the set-pieces.

The Samoan connection of Nonu and Isaia Toeava had their moments, sparking numerous raids with powerful surges and brilliant footwork, while Mils Muliaina was the calming influence from the back.

Solid and robust runner Hosea Gear will cherish his memorable introduction on the big stage and is destined for big things in the near future. Apart from a brain snap during an attacking raid, Jimmy Cowan did another great job before being replaced by Jason Leonard. And Dan Carter was just the conductor of a beautiful symphony orchestra.

He may have missed a sitter but along with South Africa’s Steyn boys, is arguably the best goal-kicker in the world. Overall, it definitely made for a much more entertaining match.

Meanwhile, an odd pattern had materialised from the just-completed Tri-Nations, with the Springboks dominating the All Blacks three games to nil. Still, the New Zealanders could hardly have been a terrible team despite the furore. After all, they themselves dismantled a quality Wallabies outfit in similar fashion, winning three Tests to love.

The Springboks are still the team to beat and are deserving world champions, whereby the All Blacks are rapidly working their way back up again.

And the Wallabies have no reason to be ashamed as they are in the rebuilding phase with a relatively new coach in his sophomore year, and a very talented young team with an average age of 24.

At precisely the half-way point before NZ 2011, the questions are starting to come thick and fast. Have the South Africans peaked too soon? Are the All Blacks the real deal? Can the Wallabies overcome their latest shambles in time?

Time indeed is of the essence - and it is exactly that which will tell whether the Southern Hemisphere heavyweights have what it takes to maintain their superiority over their supercilious Northern rivals.

As it stands since the inaugural 1987 World Cup, the ledger is 5-1 in favour of the Southern superpowers. But beware of the European capabilities of slowly crawling unexpectedly through the back door, to reach their own destiny.

Ireland are on the rise and their 100 per cent record in 2009 is no coincidence considering Irish province Leinster also took out the punishing rigours of the Heineken Cup.

Of the other home unions, Wales and England are undoubtedly strong contenders but unlike France, they’ll either fascinate with their play, fluctuate with their performances or frustrate the hell out of their opponents to win at all costs.

Impossible is nothing to these guys, so perhaps it might be a good idea not to underestimate the European neighbours well in advance.

Wonderful visionary concepts of other ‘dream teams’ have delighted rugby supporters the world over, such as the traditionally famous Barbarians, the unbreakable challenge of the British and Irish Lions, and to a lesser extent, the unfortunate brief appearances of the flamboyant and unpredictable Pacific Islanders.

In terms of the current world rankings leading to New Zealand in two years' time, the upcoming tours could be a perfect dress-rehearsal that will indicate who’s hot and who’s not.

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